title: Was there a universal tRNA before specialized tRNAs came into existence?
abstract: It is generally true that evolving systems begin simply and become more complex in the evolutionary process. For those who try to understand the origin of a biochemical system, what is required is the development of an idea as to what simpler system preceeded the present one. Here we present an hypothesis that a universal tRNA molecule, capable of reading many codons may have preceeded the appearance of individual tRNAs. Evidence seems to suggest that this molecule may have been derived from a common ancestor of the contemporary 5S rRNAs and tRNAs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Alabama, Birmingham 35294.
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Lacey
authors.forename: M P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Staves
mesh_terms: D005075:Biological Evolution; D008954:Models, Biological; D000069497:Origin of Life; D014176:Protein Biosynthesis; D012341:RNA, Ribosomal, 5S / Q000235:genetics; D012343:RNA, Transfer / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D012341:RNA, Ribosomal, 5S; D012343:RNA, Transfer